Rebellious Aurora | ✓

twenty-one | he's Ashton Nixon for god's sake

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I ended up not going to the local café at all even though something inside of me urged me to. Whatever problems Jiao and Landon had, they could solve it together without me for the time being. For now, I just needed to be by myself.

I had returned home three hours later to my parents and Dakota who were sitting in the living room, watching some sort of movie. My parents didn't acknowledge me but Dakota did as she had waved me over, a huge grin plastered on her face. I had only shaken my head in response before heading to my room.

Now, I was at the beach by myself. The one where I had witnessed Ruby and Ashton together. I was supposed to attend school today but I managed to turn the car around and decided to go where the car would take me.

I breathed in the sea salt scent and sighed in content. Since it was a weekday and in the middle of school hours, there weren't many people around. There were only a few couples roaming around the beach hand in hand, a couple of elderly people having a picnic with their grandchildren and that was about it.

It was quiet and I loved it.

I allowed the gentle breeze caress my skin, my hair flowing slightly behind me as the sun rays seeped inside my skin, sending warmth through my entire body.

"Didn't expect to find you here," a familiar masculine voice spoke up behind me, forcing me snap my eyes open as my head began to hang low whilst I exhaled a sharp breath.

"And I thought you were at school," a familiar feminine voice added, a hint of amusement hidden in its tone.

I spoke way too soon.

I briefly closed my eyes for a second to comprehend the situation, to gather my thoughts together before rolling my shoulders back and stood up. I brushed the tiny grains of sand off my denim jeans before turning around, a blank expression replacing my relaxed, content one as I tilted my head up to see two people with their arms crossed over their chests.

"Cayden, Millicent," I acknowledged the Nixon siblings, my eyes slightly widening when I realised my tone was chipped and assertive as if I wanted nothing to do with them.

Cayden slightly frowned, shaking his head in amusement before his blue eyes softened. Just the way Ashton's would if he saw me in this state. I cursed under my breath for thinking about him as I clenched my fists tightly at my sides and exhaled slowly. "Can we talk?"

I shot Millicent a look as she shrugged with an innocent expression on her face. "There's nothing to talk about. I actually wanted to spend the day alone."

Cayden and Millicent briefly glanced at each other before a small smile crawled onto their lips. I raised my eyebrows in confusion and in a blink of an eye, I was sitting in between Cayden and Millicent, with Cayden's arm draped around my shoulders and Millicent's head leaning against my arm.

Somehow, I allowed myself to welcome their presence as we stared out into the ocean, our eyes solely focused on the crystal blue water that gleamed in the blinding sunlight. I exhaled a breath and slowly, my head leant against Cayden's broad shoulder as I heard him release a chuckle.

"Comfortable?" he questioned softly as I could feel his eyes burning the top of my head.

I rolled my eyes in response, my heart feeling lightweight. "No, not at all."